Exoticca Travel

A CAUTIONARY TALE-DO NOT USE!
If I could give a zero for Exoticca, I would! The real test of a person and company is when things go wrong- how will they help you?
I had read the glowing reviews on this and other sites before booking a holiday of the Golden Triangle in India with my husband and 2 children from 26th January to 4th February 2025. I was really enjoying myself as the guide, Narendra, seemed charming and informative and the accommodation was mostly good. Then on 28th January I stepped onto a step provided by the coach company; because it was unstable, it ricocheted against my right leg, causing extreme pain and a deep gash. Whilst my fellow passengers were very sweet and helpful, Narendra to my surprise and disappointment did not seem at all concerned, so when I went back to our hotel I cleaned it with an antiseptic wipe and dressed it from my fist aid kit, thinking that was sufficient.
Unfortunately, a few days later, the pain was excruciating and the wound was festering, so that evening my daughter messaged Narendra, explaining our concerns and that we planned to go to the nearest private hospital to have it looked at.
We got no response from Narendra at all, which was shocking as he always said he was available 24/7, so my lovely children and husband insisted on waiting with me in A & E. The doctors there said I had a deep wound infection and gave me antibiotics, painkillers and a fresh dressing, telling me to have it redressed in a couple of days.
Narendra did apologise the next day for his lack of response (giving no reason) but still did not seem to be concerned. Again, Narendra did not offer to accompany me to my next hospital visit in New Delhi, and, as on the first occasion, we made all the travel arrangements for the visits ourselves, including negotiating the language barrier, which was considerable.
The consultant in the second hospital was concerned I had cellulitis, but as I was flying the next day he strongly advised me to go to A & E immediately I landed, which I did. I have now had 5 visits to A & E since my return, as the wound was causing concern.
I spoke to a lady from Exoticca’s Customer Care informing them of my problem and seeking compensation from them as the injury was a direct result of their agents’ negligence. She was extremely unhelpful; yesterday they offered me a derisory amount of £250 credit in my Exoticca wallet. Now who does that benefit, I wonder cynically? Clearly, only Exoticca.
I have rejected their offer out of hand and will be bringing a legal suit against them for damages as I have strong case on the grounds of their negligence and/ breach of duty of care, which will be far higher than if they settled out of court and will in addition cause them reputational damage.
I do not want anyone else to suffer as I have, hence my review.
Watch this space!

I´ve travelled with Exoticca and everything worked nice and smooth coast to coast. And at a great prize!

Mmm. Trying to define an actual price for a trip to Peru, as the one quoted included flights without any check inn baggage allowance. After waiting a long time for the phone to be answered, they simply put the phone down on me, when I said that i didn't wish fro them to take my details at this stage, as I was interested in finding out a more realistic price for the holiday. Clearly, they either need help in customer servicing, are so busy that they do not need new clients or are a terrible company. I won't be finding out. Blimey, I have just read the other 1 star reviews. Looks like a lucky escape.

We took an 11-day trip to Morocco in November, 2024. The problem is that the company contracted with a poor local company.

For the entire trip, we went where the guide wanted us to go. He prioritized taking us to vendor demonstrations and restaurants, where we watched him receive kickbacks. We couldn't go where we wanted to go. No time to shop, pictures, etc. It was a long, boring bus ride, and we arrived at our hotel after dark. The hotels were too far from the city centers to walk into town safely. Our bus driver was an incredible driver on the dark, narrow, hazardous roads.

At Aït Benhaddou, we stopped for a restroom/coffee break and then started to leave. I had to demand that they turn the bus around so that we could walk through the city. He gave us 30 minutes to explore a once-in-a-lifetime ancient city.

Because Exoticca offers different classes of hotels, we spent 40 minutes each morning and again in the evening running between hotels to gather our group.

We were miserable for 11 days. We actually left the tour one day early to explore on our own. In the future, we are going to pay what it takes to get a trip we can enjoy.

They are an awful company to deal with. Take your money early, wait until the last minute to book, no communication. We paid extra but still ended up with a tiny room, no place to bn put luggage and see through glass shower. Ladies we met in Bangkok, who did not pay the extra, ended up in the hooker area of Bangkok and bugs in the bed. She called it a bait and switch company.

Last day of our 23 night trip covering…
Last day of our 23 night trip covering Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand. Amazing trip with very helpful and informative guides throughout. Stayed in Charm category hotels and all to a good to high standard. Excottica have been amazing throughout- communicating key information as and when needed. Many of the issues I see people complain about are due to the fact they have not read fully what is and is not included. We witnessed similar situations when we were away. Guides would take the time to explain pick up times/meeting points but people chose to either not listen or ignore and then complain that they didn't know information. Each stage of the journey has a Whatsapp group set up where Excoticca or the guide puts key info. Don't know why people are unable to read for themselves. Cannot recommend highly enough

Date of experience: 14 November 2024

Travelled to South American with Exoticca (22 days and it was really good( places trips etc).
Had some logistical issues with flights/ travel and informed Exoticca who took my findings onboard and compensated us for our inconveniences.
Would use them again 👍

Booked a trip to Jordan for Christmas this year. They sent me an urgent email about a month ago saying that flights were no longer available and offered alternative that reduced the trip by a day at each end. Said no and then waited a further 3 weeks for them to contact me with another alternative. Had sent several emails and tried to phone but no replies anywhere and the stress of not knowing whether we were going on holiday or not. Taken time off work too. Only writing a review here made that contact me then made a formal complaint directly to them only to be told that there was a big wait for replies to formal complaints. They then offered me better flights but in the 3 days it took them to do that, the flights had gone. They have now offered me new flights whereby we loose 2 days of the trip again. They also offered me my money back in the form of credit to book another trip with them. Unbelievable. Have requested full refund. Avoid at all costs.

I am not sure what has happened to Exoticca, we travelled with them previously, prior to the Pandemic and the customer service was good and tours well structured. But now their customer service is non existent. We have queries on a tour and have E-mailed multiple times and recieved no reply at all, phoned but the phone is never answered. Customer service is just shocking....from my experience do not book with this company total lack of any customer service.

I booked a trip with Exoticca Aug.30 & was charged $200 per person (a total of $600) above their advertised price. I was not informed of the price increase during booking & only realized it after I paid the total quoted.
Since that time, I have had several phone calls & emails with Exoticca. I have asked for a refund of the $600 & an explanation as to why I was charged more than the advertised tour price. I have received neither. I have received no reply to my last 3 emails of Oct. 5, 11 and 16.

🗣️ -5! TERRIBLE! Worst “tour company ever! 👎🏼 Headquarters in Spain! Once you purchase forget about customer service! Exoticca only resells your purchased tour to a 3rd party, so because you’re not buying direct from that tour company they will give you the worst service. They change last minute flight days and hotels without notice, their schedules are terrible, also flight connections in worst hours. Bad tour guides! Without a dough they will squeeze every penny for their profit! And 0 for your confort! 👎🏼The hotels they choose are outdated, away from point of interest and you will not know until you arrive! 🗣️Not even for free I will go through this nightmare again!

There is absolutely no customer service after you have booked and paid for your trip. Agents only respond to the call selection for new bookings. You will remain on hold until your battery dies and if you do get an agent by selecting the option for new bookings, you will again be transferred to a non-monitored call queue.

You are truly on your own after you have booked the trip.

The overall holiday was tremendous value for money, The hotels were good, the trips, transfers and above all the tour guides were well informed and genuinely seemed to enjoy passing their knowledge on

I booked a trip to Norway and was told their sale was ending, so had to make a decision. The price next morning was reduced by $500. I spoke to Exoticca to request a refund or at least credit for a future trip as it was less than 24 hours. They refused and said they can't help me, once it is booked the price is final. The worst customer service.

Tried to contact this company via email for trip information prior to booking. No option for this on their website without a booking reference. Do they have any brains?

Scam!!!

I recently booked a trip and flight with Exoticca Travel Agency on June 2nd, 2024, and unfortunately, my experience was far from satisfactory. The primary issue arose from the agency's failure to fulfill their commitment regarding seat selection for the flight.

During the booking process, I specifically requested seat reservations for my flights. The agent assured me that seat selection would be available within approximately 24 hours through the Exoticca app. However, when I attempted to select my seats on June 4th, I was informed by the airline that seat selection had to be facilitated by the third-party travel agency.

Upon contacting Exoticca, I received reassurance via email that seat selection could be arranged without issue. However, this assurance was later contradicted in another email on June 6th, where it was stated that advanced seat selection may require payment, a detail not disclosed during the booking process.

Further complications arose on June 11th when Exoticca informed me that they were unable to select seats for my flights and advised me to contact the airline directly. Finally, on June 12th, when I attempted to cancel my trip and request a refund due to Exoticca's failure to provide promised services, including seat selection, I was informed that I would not be eligible for any refund.

Overall, my experience with Exoticca Travel Agency has been deeply disappointing. Not only did they fail to fulfill their obligations regarding seat selection, but they also demonstrated a lack of transparency and willingness to rectify their mistakes or provide compensation. I strongly advise caution when considering booking with Exoticca, as my experience has left me frustrated and dissatisfied.

Despite sending a scathing report to Exoticca they congratulated me on my wonderful holiday and asked me to write a review! So here it is. Our trip to Madagascar was an unmitigated disaster. The appalling roads and the huge distances between hotels meant we were being thrown around inside a tiny bus for up to 15 hours a day. The bus we had for the first 3 days had no functioning air conditioning so we baked in temperatures of 34 degrees.The estimated travelling times bore no relation to the reality. The itinerary included such advice as “ wander around the town at your leisure” which was difficult when we arrived in the dark at 8.00pm having left the previous hotel before dawn! We arose most days around 4.00am in order to complete the day’s gruelling travel.
This was no holiday. It was torture. We were totally exhausted by the whole experience.
How could anyone from Exoticca have possibly reconnoitred this trip and deemed it feasible? Interestingly the name of the trip changed from “Madagascar, Land of the Baobabs” to “The Great Road Trip”. We would never have signed up for this if we had known the truth.
Exoticca, you must check the trip you are offering beforehand. Do not rely on information from the resort. Be honest with your clients. Read the reports sent to you ( my scathing report was responded with “ so glad you enjoyed your holiday in Madagascar!” I did not!